Supreme Court considers gay marriage: The scene and key players

Edith Windsor, 83, is mobbed by journalists and supporters as she leaves the Supreme Court on Wednesday. Windsor brought the case challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act.

Edith Windsor, 83, is mobbed by journalists and supporters as she leaves the Supreme Court on Wednesday. Windsor brought the case challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Plaintiff Edith Windsor, left, an 83-year-old lesbian who challenged the Defense of Marriage Act in court after she was ordered to pay federal inheritance tax of $363,000 following the death of her partner of more than 40 years in 2009, arrives with her lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, at the Supreme...

Plaintiff Edith Windsor, left, an 83-year-old lesbian who challenged the Defense of Marriage Act in court after she was ordered to pay federal inheritance tax of $363,000 following the death of her partner of more than 40 years in 2009, arrives with her lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, at the Supreme... (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

Heather Davidson and Julie Berger of Shelbyville, Ind., joins hundreds of other people lining up outside the Supreme Court in hopes of getting in to hear oral arguments in the DOMA case.

Heather Davidson and Julie Berger of Shelbyville, Ind., joins hundreds of other people lining up outside the Supreme Court in hopes of getting in to hear oral arguments in the DOMA case. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

The Supreme Court this week heard arguments on California's Proposition 8, which bans gay marriage, and the Defense of Marriage Act, which denies federal spousal benefits to same-sex couples. The justices could rule narrowly or extend marriage rights nationwide. Here are images from the scene...